RAVENSWOOD ALUMINUM PLANT SET TO STRIKE

(08/26/2005)

Union members at Pechiney Rolled Products in Ravenswood are voting on a contract today. If it is not approved, a strike could be imminent. "We have been told by the company that bargaining is over," said Tim Dean, the United Steelworkers of America's subdistrict director for West Virginia. "We have stood before the membership telling them this was a vote to strike." Dozens of workers from this region work at the plant. At 1,100 workers, Pechiney is Jackson County's largest employer. A strike would also affect nearby Century Aluminum, the county's second-largest private employer with about 700 people. Pechiney accounts for about 80 percent of Century's business. Century sells its molten metal to Pechiney, which then rolls it into finished aluminum products. The USWA and Gov. Joe Manchin urged members to accept the contract, while the five-member steelworkers local negotiating committee advised against it. Healthcare is one of the main issues on the table.

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